The SEC has postponed consideration of applications for spot Ethereum ETFs from BlackRock and Fidelity
The SEC has postponed a decision on applications for spot Ethereum ETFs. We are talking about documents filed by BlackRock and Fidelity.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has postponed consideration of an application for a spot Ethereum ETF from BlackRock. This is the second transfer for the iShares Ethereum Trust fund.
According to the documents, the SEC initiated a survey, which, according to the agency, should show the public's attitude to new crypto funds. In particular, the agency is interested in whether the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) mechanism causes users "special concerns about Ethereum's exposure to fraud and manipulation."
Using similar language, the SEC also postponed consideration of documents for the registration of a crypto fund from Fidelity Investments. The Commission will collect comments on applications for investment products for 21 days.
BlackRock and Fidelity submitted documents for the approval of spot Ethereum ETFs in November 2023. In addition to them, applications for registration of this asset class were sent by companies such as:
- Franklin Templeton;
- Ark Invest and 21Shares;
- Grayscale Investments;
- VanEck and others.
The crypto industry community disagreed about the possible timing of the approval of spot Ethereum ETFs. For example, analysts at Standard Chartered Bank name May 2024 as the likely date of registration of a new product.
At the same time, Stephen Mcclarg, chief investment officer of Valkyrie, urged not to wait for the launch of spot Ethereum ETFs in the near future. In his opinion, the SEC will not rush to make a decision on crypto funds.
